Spokesman of «UMEX & SimTEX 2020» Exhibition:
Success of our Defence Exhibitions … A Source of Pride for us

‮»‬‭ ‬Photography by‭ : ‬Muhammad Al Shaer
For the purpose of identifying numbers and facts from their source‭, ‬‭”‬Al-Jundi Journal‭” ‬reporter Mohamed Fahed AL Halabieh‭ ‬met with‭ ‬His Excellency Staff Brigadier Fahad Al Thehli‭, ‬the spokesman of UMEX and SimTEX 2020‭ ‬exhibition‭ ‬on the closing day of the exhibition and discussed with him the reasons behind the success of these two exhibitions held under‭ ‬one roof‭, ‬their development and the importance of our national defence industry participation and so on‭, ‬in addition to other related topics‭:‬

It is noted that this exhibition has achieved great growth and success‭, ‬what are the reasons behind this success‭, ‬do you think‭?‬
As you know‭, ‬the UMEX and SimTEX exhibition is distinguished by its focus on unmanned systems and training systems and equipment‭. ‬Through my touring the exhibition‭, ‬I noticed that many people lauded the organization of the exhibition‭, ‬and especially the number and quality of foreign delegations‭. ‬And of course‭, ‬being the only exhibition of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa‭, ‬its success with other UAE defence exhibitions is a source of pride for the UAE‭, ‬whose leadership takes care of it and strongly supports it‭. ‬There is no doubt that the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to it is a strong indication of the importance of this exhibition and the interest of our leadership in it‭. ‬Also‭, ‬hosting the Mohammed bin Zayed AL Nahyan‭ ‬competition on robotics created a spirit of competition and a competitive atmosphere between the current generation and future generations of young people to invent new ideas that will be adopted by national or foreign companies‭, ‬not to mention the organizing team and committee of the exhibition who have an important role in the success of this exhibition‭.‬
What is the extent of the growth achieved by the current edition of the exhibition compared with its previous ones‭?‬
The first edition of this exhibition was accompanied in 2015‭ ‬by IDEX and NAVDEX‭. ‬The organizing committee decided at the time to‭ ‬separate this exhibition and hold it independently due to its high turnout‭. ‬UMEX was in its second edition in 2016‭ ‬and the third in 2018‭. ‬In its first edition‭, ‬the area of‭ ‬UMEX was no more than 2200‭ ‬square meters‭, ‬the current edition area reached 25500‭ ‬square meters‭, ‬and the number of exhibitors was‭ ‬35‭ ‬companies in the first edition‭, ‬while in the current edition it reached 166‭ ‬companies‭, ‬including 66‭ ‬national companies which‭ ‬represent 40%‭ ‬of the total participation‭. ‬The number of visitors in the first edition reached 3000‭ ‬visitors while it is expected to exceed 20,000‭ ‬visitors in this edition‭. (‬The final number of visitors has reached 26,000‭ ‬visitors‭). ‬The number of media representatives increased from 100‭ ‬in the first edition to 500‭ ‬in the current edition‭, ‬while the number of delegations increased from 80‭ ‬to 200‭. ‬This is‭, ‬of course‭, ‬a clear indication of the success of UMEX and SimTEX exhibition‭.‬
Do the exhibits of this edition meet the aspirations of the UAE and its armed forces to obtain the highest level of technologies‭ ‬in the field of artificial intelligence‭, ‬unmanned systems and training equipment‭?‬
Many people think that what is shown here is for military purposes only‭. ‬But the truth is that there are a lot of civil exhibits‭ ‬and applications‭. ‬For your information‭, ‬the exhibition organizing committee will seek to increase civil exhibits in the next edition of the exhibition 2022‭, ‬in which we will see in addition to applications and equipment and unmanned devices‭, ‬applications‭ ‬and equipment for the civil side‭, ‬such as civil defence‭, ‬police equipment‭, ‬security‭, ‬port and border security‭, ‬as well as the medical field apps and equipment‭.‬
How do you compare the technologies of national companies with the foreign ones presented here‭?‬
One of the purposes for which this exhibition was held is technology transfer or technology localization‭. ‬While the national companies are present at the exhibition‭, ‬they acquire ideas through having contacts and dialogue with foreign companies‭. ‬Then they‭ ‬utilize those ideas innovatively to manufacture and produce new systems or equipment in the country and then present them to military and para-military operators inside and outside the UAE‭, ‬and this makes us proud‭. ‬In record time and after three editions of this exhibition‭, ‬our companies have become‭ – ‬if not‭ – ‬at the global level‭, ‬they have become a competitor to international companies in the field of artificial intelligence‭.‬
There is no doubt that the United Arab Emirates‭, ‬is leading the progress in military industrialization in the Arab world‭, ‬but what about the rest of the Arab countries that were absent from the scene of this very important exhibition‭?‬
Countries are not measured by their chronological age‭, ‬but are measured by the ideas and technologies they present‭. ‬We in the United Arab Emirates have a wise government that has paid most of its attention to occupy the first place‭. ‬And this interest was passed on to the people of this country and to the younger generation‭. ‬It has become our main concern to implement the theory that the Emirates should always and forever be in the first place‭. ‬There is no doubt that we will face obstacles and difficulties while trying to reach our goal‭, ‬but the determination of the Emirati people to reach their goal through unremitting efforts and hard work will enable them to achieve it and overcome obstacles‭, ‬whatever they may be‭. ‬The concern of the Emirati government and‭ ‬people‭, ‬is to highlight the advanced level of development the UAE has achieved and its ability to compete with its counterparts‭ ‬in the region and worldwide‭. ‬This has constituted an incentive for everyone residing on the Emirates soil to present what he has‭, ‬regardless of his specialization and to spare no efforts for doing so‭, ‬and this does not only apply to those working in the fields of technology we are talking about‭, ‬but also to those who work in the medical‭, ‬media‭, ‬economic‭, ‬military and civil fields who you will find moving towards one target which is placing the UAE in the first position in all fields‭.‬
Most of exhibitors consider that the volume of deals concluded in the exhibition constitutes an important part of the success of‭ ‬the exhibition‭. ‬What is your evaluation of the deals concluded on the one hand‭, ‬and on the other hand‭, ‬did the deals that were‭ ‬concluded meet the aspirations of our armed forces in terms of the technical level that they sought‭?‬
The deals concluded in this exhibition were surprising and positive‭. ‬They exceeded expectations‭. ‬And they were not only in the interest of the armed forces‭, ‬but also in the interest of the Abu Dhabi police and civil defence‭. ‬Before deals are concluded‭, ‬they are subject to extensive study by our specialized committees to determine the extent of their usefulness to our armed forces and paramilitary forces‭, ‬and that the companies that have been chosen are able to meet our requirements‭. ‬I would like to clarify‭ ‬here that‭ ‬‮٩٤‬‭% ‬of the total deals announced until yesterday‭ (‬the penultimate day of the exhibition‭) ‬were concluded with our national companies‭. ‬This is clear evidence that our national companies have the ability to efficiently compete with global companies‭.‬‭ (‬Trade deals were finally valued at approximately AED 749,081,718‭ ‬during the three-day event‭.)‬
From your point of view‭, ‬don’t you think that the strong presence of our defence industry that we are witnessing here constitutes a strong support for the continuity of these exhibitions held on our land‭?‬
Certainly‭, ‬this is true‭. ‬The presence of our defence companies on the homeland means that it is not only a support for the purchase of equipment‭, ‬but rather a continuity of the availability of equipment‭, ‬spare parts and the repair line‭, ‬and therefore their‭ ‬presence on the territory of our country means that all the systems‭, ‬equipment and spare parts they produce is within the reach‭ ‬of our armed forces at any time they want‭, ‬which enhances our national sovereignty and independence of decision‭.‬
Would you like to send a message to our armed forces through Al-Jundi Journal on this occasion‭?‬
On the last day of the exhibition‭, ‬we are pleased to congratulate our armed forces and the Ministry of Defence for their cooperation with‭ “‬ADNEC‭” ‬on the success of this exhibition‭, ‬which was achieved due to the efforts of the committees formed to organize‭ ‬it‭. ‬So I extend my sincere thanks to everyone who participated in organizing it‭. ‬And while awaiting the next exhibition‭, ‬which will certainly be at least on the same par with UMEX 2020‭, ‬if not better‭, ‬in terms of importance and development‭, ‬I would like to‭ ‬emphasize that all the fruitful efforts that have been made and led to this impressive success‭, ‬in one way or another‭, ‬constitute a support for our national economy‭, ‬and are considered a response and a true translation of the 2030‭ ‬vision of our leadership‭ ‬that seeks to reduce dependence on oil as the sole resource of the UAE economy‭. ‬Such exhibitions highlight the leading role that our country plays in our region and in the world as a whole‭. ‬While I would like to thank you for having me in this meeting‭, ‬I‭ ‬wish Al Jundi Journal all the best and every success‭. ‬

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